Andy Archer Details First Appearance In Nearly Two Years
1 year, 8 months and 21 days. That is how long it had been since redshirt junior Andy Archer took to the mound for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. 631 days had passed since he tossed 0.0 innings and allowed 2 earned runs back on May 25th, 2018 against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament.
After a long offseason which saw him miss the entire 2019 season due to recovery from a non-Tommy John elbow injury, pitching coach Danny Borrell called his number today against the Bearcats. He couldn't have been more elated.
"It definitely felt a little bit surreal," Archer said, trying to contain his excitement in the postgame press conference following the Jackets' 6-4 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats.
It also threw him off guard. Whenever pitching coach Danny Borrell made the call to the bullpen, Archer had not even been stretching, as he was not expecting to hear his name get called.
Adding to the surprise, he also joked that he didn't get his normal walk-up song of "Thriller", as the loud-speakers decided to go with Shawn Mendes' "Seniorita" instead.
"I didn't even get to enjoy [my song]!" he jokingly quipped.
Nevertheless, there he was. Still trying to get properly warmed up while having to pitch to the UC hitters. They took advantage of it for a bit, plating a trio of runs to trim GT's lead to just 2. But he was able to still rally from a jam where a pair of runner were in scoring position, and deliver the inning ending strikeout.
"The whole time I was out there, I was just trying to pitch my heart out," he said. "When things started to get rocky, I told my self i had to bear down and shown them what I'm made of."
Even after getting out of that jam, he still had to get some of the yips out. The first warmup pitch he tossed prior to the ninth inning sailed over the umpire's head, and for a moment the ump thought he was tossing at him.
But he quickly got his stuff under control. He was able to strikeout the side in the ninth, setting new career highs in innings pitched (4.0) and strikeouts (7).
On a pitching staff where versatility will be valued due to the starters that left the previous year, an outing that displayed longevity and resiliency proved his worth for the team.
"I think I showed my team that they can rely on me," he said. "Those two career highs are good, but the importance today was sending a message with my performance."
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